Early Candidates To Watch For 49ers Defensive Coordinator Vacancy

Now that the 49ers have let go of DC Steve Wilks, Albert Breer names former Chargers HC Brandon Staley as a candidate to keep an eye on for San Francisco.

Matt Barrows also mentions 49ers defensive passing game and nickels coach Nick Sorensen as an in-house candidate to watch. 

49ers HC Kyle Shanahan said they will consider in-house options but are also open to looking outside the organization for candidates who are more accustomed to San Francisco’s defensive system, via Matt Maiocco.

Breer points out Staley has experience under Eagles DC Vic Fangio from their time together in Chicago when Fangio was the Bears’ defensive coordinator. Shanahan also tried to lure Fangio to San Francisco in 2017. 

Staley, 41, began his coaching career at Northern Illinois in 2006 and worked for a number of schools including St. Thomas, Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College, Tennessee, James Madison and John Carroll before taking his first NFL coaching job with the Bears in 2017.

Staley followed Vic Fangio to Denver after he was hired as their head coach. Stanley coached outside linebackers for three years before the Rams hired him as their defensive coordinator for the 2020 season. 

From there, the Chargers hired Staley as their head coach back in January of 2021. However, the Chargers opted to move on from Staley during the 2023 season. 

Throughout his three-year tenure as head coach, Staley coached 47 games for the Chargers with a record of 24-23.

Sorensen, 45, played 10 years in the NFL for the Dolphins, Rams, Jaguars and Browns. He took his first coaching job with the Seahawks as their secondary coach in 2013 and stayed in Seattle for eight years.

The Jaguars hired him as special teams coordinator in 2021 but wasn’t retained the following offseason and became a defensive assistant with the 49ers for the following season. San Francisco promoted him to defensive pass game coordinator and nickels coach last year.